The queen may very readily be distinguished from the rest of the bees by the greater length of her body, and the comparative shortness of her wings; her legs are longer, and are not furnished with either brushes or baskets as those of the working bee, for being constantly fed by the latter, she does not need those implements; the upper surface of her body is of a brighter black than the other bees, whilst her colour underneath is a yellowish brown; her wings, which do not extend more than half the length of her body, are sinewy and strong; her long abdomen tapers nearly to a point; her head is rounder, her tongue more slender, and not nearly so long, as that of the working bee, and her sting is curved; her movements are measured and majestic, as she moves in the hive the other bees form a circle round her, none venturing to turn their backs upon her, but all anxious to show that respect and attention due to her rank and station. Whenever in the exercise of her sovereign will the queen wishes to travel amongst her subjects, she experiences no inconvenience from overcrowding; although the part of the hive to which she is journeying may be the most populous, way is immediately made, the common bees tumbling over each other to get out of her way, so great is their anxiety not to interfere with the royal progress. It is the chief function of the queen to lay the eggs from which all future bees originate, the multiplication of the species being the purpose of her existence, and she follows it up with an assiduity similar to that with which the workers construct combs or collect honey. A queen is estimated to lay in the breeding season from 1,500 to 2,000 eggs a-day, and in the course of one year is supposed to produce more than 100,000 bees. This is indeed a vast number; but when there is taken into consideration the great number required for swarms, the constant lessening of their strength by death in various ways, and the many casualties attending them in their distant travels in search of the luscious store, it does not seem that the case is over stated.